The workout train, that is…

Last week I went Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday. This week, I’ve worked out (either at home with Turbo Jam or at the gym) every single day. Monday - Thursday. Yeppers!

I also tentatively started South Beach to kick-start my metablolism. HA! I lasted two days!!!

I think as long as I work the cardio, add some weights for definition in my arms and weighted squats and lunges, and continue the intensity for the next three weeks, I will be in decent enough shape for my friends’ Mexico beach wedding.

I just have to say no to the cookies!

Well, I thought I was getting better. Yesterday started out great. Worked until about noon, and then went on another college campus tour with my kids (I have a daughter who is looking to transfer to a local school and a son who is a high school junior). The goal here is to expose my son to as many colleges as possible over the next few months so that he has some ideas about what he likes and dislikes in a campus.

In that vein, last weekend we toured UCLA, about a hour’s drive from home.

I am sure you have been following along as our new President tries to fix our ailing economy. But have you been paying attention to what some of the States want to do?

They are hurting jst as much as everyone else. There are a lot of states, if not all, that are having to cut budgets and are coming across shortfalls. The chances are that any tax breaks we get from the federal government are going to be offset by higher taxes by the states.

The one that really caught my attention is the one they call the ‘obesity tax’.

We’re wrapping up the six-part series on Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness this week and one last time I would like to give a big shout-out to The Fitness Nerd for researching this topic so thoroughly.

If you haven’t been following the entire series, I hope you’ll take the time to revisit the previous postings on DOMS via the following links: Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V. It truly is a worthwhile read.

Can I Still Workout With Sore Muscles?

While allowing your muscles time to rest and recover after training is critical, there appears to be very little evidence that workout out when your muscles are still sore will cause additional damage or impede strength or muscle gains.

In fact, many people report anecdotal improvements in symptoms of DOMS after performing additional bouts of exercise in subsequent days.

Oh - and here’s my right lung. If I coughed up one lung Monday night, then I sure left the other one last night! My run went off without a hitch. I kept things slow (10:28 pace, 81% MHR). I’m getting impatient because I want to run faster, but after a month off, I keep bringing myself back to the fact that I’m not where I was last December. Grrr. And, in actuality, after looking at the data from my Garmin, I’m not all that far back from where I was last month.

Just when I thought you couldn’t teach an old dog (and I’m getting older by the day) new tricks, I learned yesterday how to edit data from my Garmin.

Over the next year you will start to see a new “number” in your grocery stores - the Overall Nutritional Quality Index (ONQI). This new index is being marketed under the NuVal Nutritional Scoring System and was to have launched in three major US supermarket chains this past September, although I have not been able to pinpoint the names of the three chains.

The system, developed over a two-year period by a panel of 12 medical and nutrition experts from leading North American universities and health organizations, uses a proprietary algorithmic formula to score the nutritional value of foods on a scale of one to 100, weighing some 30 different nutrient factors including fiber, Vitamin content, Omega 3 fatty acids, saturated fat, trans fat, sodium, sugar, protein quality, energy density, glycemic load, et al.

A higher ONQI score reflects foods with higher nutritional value, offering consumers the opportunity to evaluate products within and across specific food categories -

• Fruits & Vegetables
• Meat & Poultry
• Seafood
• Frozen Vegetables
• Canned Vegetables
• Salty Snacks
• Cereal
• Cookies
• Crackers
• Pasta

So, now shoppers can literally compare apples to oranges, as well as apples to chocolate, apples to potato chips and just about anything else you would care to compare an apple to.

My Two Cents:

I have admit that I am pretty skeptical about the value of this system.

This week we will be wrapping up our series on Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness by contributor Matt, aka The Fitness Nerd, over at Answer Fitness.

Today’s posting focuses on clinically proven methods for preventing DOMS while Thursday’s article provides some practical advice from Matt.

You can revisit the previous postings on DOMS via the following links: Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV.

Methods For Preventing DOMS That Have Been Clinically Proven to Work

There are several techniques that researchers have found effective at treating the symptoms of DOMS and may lessen the soreness and tightness associated with DOMS.

I suppose the good thing about how stressed out I am right now is that there has to be some point where the stress is so all-encompassing that it breaks the stress eating cycle and I stop being a stress eater. Huh?

Good thing I figured out how to restrain myself when it comes to chocolate and sweets. I have a bunch of chocolate in the kitchen, but only indulge in small amounts every few days.

I’m not sure how I kicked that, but I pretty much just started telling myself “chocolate?